My New DIY Planter

Continuing my theme of DIY planters this week, here’s another that the Hubs made for me. It started with this cute wooden caddy I picked up on the buy/sell page. I had planned to use it as a planter, but the support bar down the middle just wasn’t going to work for that.

I mentioned my disappointment to the Hubs and we chatted about how I wished it had been configured. He must have been listening and wanting a project, because a few days later he surprised me with this.

This sucker is solid wood and super HEAVY. We gave it two coats of the teal outdoor paint we’ve used on other projects like the bin planters and firepit chairs.

Once it was in place I realized how deep it was and knew I didn’t want to fill the whole thing with dirt. So I had the Hubs drill a couple drainage holes in the bottom and we gathered scrap wood to create a little platform half way up the inside.

Now I needed something to hold the dirt and actually plant in. I decided to try the foil baking pans from the grocery store, since they were cheap and readily available. I added two to my grocery order and picked them up the next day.

The pans fit the width of the box perfectly. I decided to use two, end to end to fill the space as much as possible. Next came planting.

I had some violas that needed a home so this seemed like a perfect spot for them. Plus the Hubs really likes these little blooms, so it was fitting that I fill the planter he built me with flowers he likes. 🙂

They still need to grow into the space a bit but they look pretty cute for now and add a bit of color to this corner of the deck. I like how they spill over the side a bit too.

Next year I’m thinking I’ll use ferns in the caddy since the area will be more shaded when the gazebo cover goes up soon. Perhaps I’ll snag a couple faux ferns like the ones I used out front in the vintage cart so there’s 0 maintenance!